Its Monday and Majete in the green

Well, hello there. I hope that you are fabulously well and have had another lovely weekend. Here in the Luangwa, we really are starting to worry about the rain as we have had maybe a dozen drops in the last 3 weeks, so the bush is getting very dry, and the river is dropping quickly. Having gone from near flooding to this, lets…

Well, hello there. I hope that you are fabulously well and have had another lovely weekend. Here in the Luangwa, we really are starting to worry about the rain as we have had maybe a dozen drops in the last 3 weeks, so the bush is getting very dry, and the river is dropping quickly. Having gone from near flooding to this, lets hope that things normalize soon and the heavens open and give us what we need at this time of the year. We opened Nsefu yesterday for River Journeys and the camp is looking absolutely fantastic. The upside of no rain means that there is less mud so the guests can get out and stretch their legs and explore the Nsefu area to its full potential without literally getting bogged down. I am sure we will get more updates over the next few weeks from Willie and Bessy about life up in the wilds. For this week however, we are heading across the border to Malawi where we are hearing from Anneri and Johan at Mkulumadzi who are getting everything ship shape for the season ahead. So, Anneri and Johan over to you:

“We are well into the rainy season, but for the most part it has been a lot dryer this year than previous years. The little rain that we did have in January transformed the dry bush into a lush, green landscape.

With the dryer spell that we had in February it meant that most of the animals need the water brought down by the Shire River. Waterbuck, Nyala and Impala are in abundance around the lodge. And with the waterholes drying up throughout the Reserve it has been great seeing the big herds of Elephants again especially with lots of little ones, as it is always fun seeing them not knowing quite what to do with their trunks.

It was quite a treat to watch some elephants cross the Mkulumadzi River right under our bridge. You can watch it here.

With the bush being so lush, the predators have taken to using the roads to move around. The team driving out of camp early mornings on shopping runs have frequently seen Lions either walking down the road, or just having a rest in the shade next to the road. Johan, the country manager, had luck on his side on one of the trips to Blantyre when he saw a Leopard take down an Impala right on the road. What a sight! You can watch it here.

Although some people might not to be too keen on bugs, I have to tell you that we have the most beautiful bugs around. They vary in size and color and seem to change every week with another bug being more dominant in the area.

This last week was butterflies! White butterflies flitting around between the chalets, the office and everywhere you drive. Within a couple of days orange ones joined them.

It has been a busy time at the lodge from when we closed for the off season in January. The rooms were prioritized first with some of the chalets getting new outside decking and a coat of paint. With the rooms being packed up it also makes for a great time to give the inside a fresh coat of paint too, getting them looking great for the reopening in March. Our game drive vehicles have also gone in for some work this month. Looking forward to seeing how they turn out in March when we get them back.”

Wonderful thank you so much for this, all sounds busy and exciting, and we look forward to hearing more over the course of the season. 

For now, though, it is that time of the day where I get to bid you a very fond farewell and hope that you have another smashing week ahead with plenty of smiles and laughter and don’t forget to look after one another. We can’t wait to update you with all the Luangwa goings on next week.